Although the tests were done on animals the US researchers say the results could be a warning to teenagers who drink to excess.

Dr Douglas Matthews, from the University of Memphis, who led the study, said, "These findings suggest adolescence as a unique developmental period where exposure to high alcohol levels can produce changes in biological functions that might have long-lasting implications."

"Binge" drinking is defined as consuming five or more drinks in one session.

It was simulated in rats using an alcohol consumption pattern known as chronic intermittent ethanol (CIE) exposure.

The animals were 30 days old when the study started - the rat equivalent of adolescence.

CIE exposure was found to produce a high level of alcohol tolerance in the rats which in some cases lasted into adulthood. It also significantly hampered normal growth, as measured by weight gain, and altered liver function. Brain function also appeared to be affected.

The findings were reported yesterday in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.

Professor Linda Patia Spear, from the Centre for Developmental Psychobiology at Binghamton University, New York, said little was known about the long-term effects of alcohol consumption on teenagers.

She said, "In humans, a substantial number of studies have shown that the earlier individuals start using alcohol, the more likely they are to have alcohol-related problems in adulthood, although it is not known whether this early exposure is causal or is just a marker for problematic alcohol involvement."